The Dragoon of the Sun
by Raiden-sama
Summary: Carlos Martinez is a homeless 17-year-old orphan who grew up on the streets of Los Angeles. A chance discovery will soon lead him to more adventure than he has ever known... PG-13 for violence and swearing. Story takes liberties with LOD storyline.
1. The Boy From The Streets

Chapter One: The Boy From The Streets

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Los Angeles. The City of Angels. Carlos wished, anyway. Nicknames were nothing but lame-ass shrouds these days, he reasoned. Although he was only seventeen, he had an adult's cynicism and carried himself much like an adult. He couldn't even remember the last time he had gotten a chance to act his age. Having to grow up with virtually nobody to rely on can do that to a person.

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"Damn, it's starting to get cold. Better find a place before it gets too cold…" He jammed his hands into the pockets of his long, black leather jacket. It was just a plain thing, well worn. He knew better than to join Dogtown or any of the other Hispanic street gangs. He had pride in his heritage but he felt it ridiculous to carry it to such an extreme. He only fought for himself, and only when it was necessary. As he walked along the sidewalk, he heard a voice.

"Help!"

The voice obviously belonged to a woman. Carlos sighed, and shrugged it off. There was little point in fighting an unnecessary battle. He walked onward. As he rounded the corner, he heard it again.

"No! Someone please help me!"

"Shut your cake-hole, bitch!" That voice, a male's, made Carlos freeze in place. He turned in the direction of the speaker. Two young men were trying to subdue a young woman of about twenty or twenty-one, Carlos guessed. The guys, however, he knew all too well.

__

"Grr…those pieces of absolute shit!" With a sigh, he started towards the three. Normally, he wouldn't have bothered. But with those two…they deserved another beat-down.

"Please…please don't do this…!" begged the woman.

"We'll do what we like!" said the younger-looking man.

Carlos walked to within ten feet of them, and stopped. "You know," he began in that cool, calm voice he had, "you're supposed to respect ladies."

All three of them turned in his direction. Immediately, the two men let go of the woman and started to back up slightly.

"Blades! This…this is none of your damn business!" At the mention of the name "Blades", Carlos frowned.

"Yeah! Get out of here…or we'll mess you up!" The severity of the threat was NOT matched by the guy's voice at all. In fact, he sounded a little…scared? The young woman had not run off. Instead, she just stood there, and watched with confusion. Why were these two guys backing up from a kid?

Carlos' expression turned to steel. "Last chance, pals. You'll regret sticking around."

The guys looked at each other, and then rushed right at the teenager. Carlos swiftly went into action. Pushing back the edges of his jacket, he drew the weapons that gave him the name "Blades": a twin pair of fierce-looking knives, with blades nearly six inches long. They were designed to kill. The one in his left hand had a black handle, and the one in his right had a white handle. As the first man attempted to strike with his own small switchblade, Carlos gracefully sidestepped the charge and countered by slashing him across the right forearm with the knife in his left hand. The movement was so fluid and graceful that it could have easily been a dancing move. The man immediately dropped his weapon and grabbed his wounded arm, crying out in pain as the blood flowed over his hand.

"You little bastard!!" he roared.

"Nick! I'll get him for you!" The other man, smaller than his partner, quickly ran up and tried to plunge his blade into Carlos' back. Carlos responded by swiftly using his arm to block the stab attempt, and then delivering a vicious knee to the groin. Immediately, the man fell to his knees in agony, losing his grip on his weapon. Carlos then put the left knife away, grabbed him from behind, and held his right knife level with the man's throat.

"You're caught, pal," said Carlos with a sneer. Upon seeing the huge blade right up against his throat, the man panicked.

"Nick! Help! Please, do something!!"

Nick stood up, still cradling his arm. "Forget it! I'm out of here!"

"What?! Nick, you can't leave me here! NICK!!!!" Nick just ran off, a turn of events that did not surprise Carlos in the least. He scoffed, then bent down to ear level with the man who was now totally at his mercy.

"What are you going to do, huh?" said Carlos in a voice so icy that it even surprised the teen. "Your so-called friend has left you. What ARE you going to do…?"

The man finally broke. "Please…please don't kill me! I don't want to die…please, I beg of you…!" He began to cry. "Please…!"

Carlos then remembered the woman. He turned his head. Surprisingly, she was still there, staring at him. Right into his eyes. The look of fear and confusion on her suddenly made him think.

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"If I just split this guy, I'll be no better than them. I can't do this. Not in front of that poor girl."

Carlos swiftly removed the blade from the man's throat. He stepped back a few steps. "Get your ass out of here. Now, before I change my mind."

The man quickly stood up. The wet spot at his feet made it obvious that he had gone through quite a period of terror. Noticing he wasn't leaving yet, probably from terror, Carlos decided it would be prudent to give him one last jolt.

"I said GO!!" he roared. _"¡VETE DE ACÁ!!" _Nothing more was needed. The guy was gone in less than two seconds. Sighing, Carlos sheathed his right blade. He then looked at the woman. It must've been with more coldness than he meant, because she jumped a little.

"Are you okay?" Carlos tried his best to put some gentleness in his voice. It was difficult, though.

"Um…yes, I'm fine. T-thanks…" she replied nervously.

"Don't worry, I don't want anything for what I did. You should get going before it gets too cold."

She nodded, and started to walk off. Carlos decided to walk down the alleyway he was in to search for some kind of shelter. As he walked, the woman called to him again.

"Hey, uh…what's your name?"

Carlos stopped for a second. He took a deep breath, and looked over his shoulder. "Carlos." Without a further word, he walked onward.

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That night, Carlos had found a spot. It was in an alleyway not too far from his earlier encounter. As he sat down on the ground, he happened to notice a strange light coming from around a corner.

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"What the hell is that?" The teen slowly rose to his feet, ran a hand through his jet-black hair, and walked towards the source of the light. _"Don't go toward the light!"_ he joked to himself. Suddenly, he stopped. Where had that come from? Shaking it off, he headed towards the light source again. As he rounded the corner, the light suddenly disappeared. He looked around, confused. Instinctively, his hands went to the handles of his knives. He was not going to be jumped by some two-bit loser with a flashlight and a slightly clever mind. He stood there for a second, then relaxed a little when he felt sure nobody was there.

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"Crap. Maybe it's true that living out in the street long enough will drive you crazy." As he turned to leave, a bright glow erupted behind him. He whirled around, expecting to find perhaps a cop with his flashlight aimed right at him. Instead, what he saw was like nothing he had seen before. A section of the wall was glowing with a bright white light!

"What in the HELL is this?" he said out loud. The glow seemed to radiate from every brick in the section. Carlos was quite literate and had managed to get his hands on some textbooks before, but he was sure none of them had ever mentioned this! He reached a hand out to touch the wall, then drew it back.

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"What am I doing? I don't know what this damned thing will do to me! It could vaporize every last damned atom in my body!" He sighed. _"Then again, anything to get out of this life…oh, the hell with it!"_ He reached out again, and touched the wall. It was very warm to the touch. The warmth actually seemed to penetrate his hand and go all the way to his heart. The feeling made Carlos actually do something he hadn't done in a long time. A smile slowly crossed his lips. However, it was short-lived, as the wall suddenly released a blinding flash that overwhelmed the Hispanic boy and sent him into a state of unconsciousness…


	2. Culture Shock

Chapter Two: Culture Shock

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Carlos slowly cracked open an eye. Immediately, light assaulted it, and he was forced to close the eye again. He groaned a little.

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"Where the hell am I now…?" he thought as soon as his mind could form coherent thoughts again. Surprisingly, he could still recall touching the glowing wall, and how warm it felt before the brilliant flash overcame him. He shifted a little, and then realized something. He was actually in a bed! For most people, this wouldn't have been a surprise, but Carlos could not remember the last time he had been able to sleep anywhere but out in the street in an alley somewhere. He tried to open his eyes again, and succeeded in withstanding the light this time.

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"Some social worker must've found me, or whatnot. Could've been a lot worse."

He slowly sat up in the bed. He looked around. The room was very old-fashioned, even to Carlos. Stone walls surrounded him on all sides, except for one that sported a window. He could see the door on the opposite side of the room. It was wooden and finely crafted, like something out of the early Renaissance. Having seen doors crafted like that in churches, Carlos guessed that was where he was. Suddenly, a thought crossed his mind, and his hands went to his hips. To his horror, his primary weapons were gone.

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"Damn them!" he thought. He turned his head to the side. There was a nightstand, and a chair nearby. Carlos sighed with relief when he saw the chair, for his coat and knife belt were hung on it. He decided it would be prudent to go ahead and leave. However, as he started to get up, a knock came at the door. Carlos considered not answering, but decided that it would be okay to let the person come in.

"Yes?"

The door opened. A young woman, dressed in terribly old-fashioned clothing, entered.

"Oh! You're awake. We were concerned after what happened."

Carlos raised an eyebrow. "Well, that's a nice change. Usually, people don't even bother." He got out of the bed. "But hey, thanks for the room and board. I'll be going now." He put his coat back on, and picked up his knife belt. He was about to put it back on, then stopped.

"Um…you guys don't mind if…?"

"Hmm? Oh, those. It's not a problem; we have people with their own weapons coming through here all the time. Just…try to keep them put away." She smiled at him.

Carlos nodded, and put his knife belt back on. "So, which church is this, anyway? First Presbyterian?"

The woman gave him a confused look. "Church?"

"This isn't a church? Weird…then what's with the old-school décor?"

The confused expression remained on her face. "Old…school?"

Carlos sighed. "You know, old-fashioned, out of date, not in style anymore?" He had very little patience for people who didn't bother to familiarize themselves with current lingo.

"Oh, I see. Well, it is an old castle. Quite old indeed."

Carlos nodded. "Yeah, I'll bet…hey, wait just a second." His eyes narrowed in a questioning manner. "Did you just say 'castle'…?"

"Yes, this is Indels Castle."

Now it was Carlos' turn to be confused. "Indels? Where's that, somewhere near Long Beach?"

"Um…actually it's in Bale, the capital of Serdio…"

Carlos chuckled. "Okay…look, I admit it. I'm more familiar with East L.A. than West L.A. Cut the crap and tell me where I really am, okay?"

"…I'm not trying to deceive you. It's true. This is Indels Castle, in Bale."

Now Carlos was getting irritated. "All right, that's it. I'm out of here. I'll find my own way back to where I usually hang around." He sniffed the air suddenly. "That's odd…"

"What is, young man?"

"The air…it's cleaner than it should be." On an impulse, he went to the window…and nearly lost it. Outside, he could see a small, simple town, rather than a gigantic city. "You've got to be kidding me…!"

"Are you all right?"

He turned back around. "Yes…I'll be fine. I'll just sit down for a second…" He plunked himself down on the chair, muttering curses in Spanish to himself.

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"One minute, I'm in East L.A., the next, I'm in the goddamned Middle Ages. Beautiful. Just BEAUTIFUL!" Suddenly, a voice came from inside the hallway.

"…I just want to get a look at that guy! You don't see someone fall out of a hole in the air everyday, y'know!" The voice was that of a young girl. Carlos cringed a little at the high pitch. Something about that voice made him not too eager to meet its owner…a thought that was reinforced when she burst into the room.

"Hi!!" While the young woman had been wearing an old-style long dress, this girl was wearing an outfit right out of a lame sci-fi flick. It was like a cross between a ballerina's outfit and a belly dancer's outfit. Also, her hair was a shiny platinum color. Carlos shrugged it off, assuming it was just a dye. The girl ran up to him all of a sudden, so fast that he didn't even have time to react.

"Hello? Hello, hello, hello!" She waved a hand in front of his face. Carlos finally got up to speed and raised a hand.

"Cut that out, it's-" Before he could finish his sentence, she cut him off.

"What's your name, anyway?"

"…Carlos. Carlos Martinez."

The girl cocked her head. "Interesting name. Mine's Meru. Where ya from?"

Carlos sighed and turned his head. "Somewhere in East L.A."

"Never heard of it. Must be some other continent. I'd better take off now. You might want to come down and talk to King Al. Hey, maybe he knows about the place you're from. Take it easy!" She got these words out and left so fast that Carlos didn't have time to respond.

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"That was really, really weird. Meru…sounds kinda Japanese. Ah, well." He sighed and stood up. Not quite sure what to do next, he chose to do what the girl had mentioned, talk to this king guy. He turned to the woman, who had not moved since Meru entered the room.

"Can you take me to the King?" he asked, feeling really ridiculous as he said it.

"As a matter of fact, I can. King Albert is in his library right now. He usually doesn't mind visitors…though he may be a little questioning of your method of arrival."

Carlos blinked. "What do you mean?"

"…I think the King can explain that to you."

The woman led him down a flight of stairs. It was just like being in some movie. Unlit torches adorned the walls at strategic points. Upon reaching the bottom, she took him through several more hallways. Just as the walk began to severely grate on Carlos' nerves, they reached the library.

"Dios mio…" Carlos' jaw nearly hit the ground. He had never seen a collection of book so large in his life! The stacks were unbelievably tall, and seemed to stretch past his field of vision.

"Your Majesty?" called the woman. "Are you in here?"

"…Yes! What is it?" The voice was somewhat smoother than Carlos had been expecting. It sounded like a young man's voice, not an aged man's.

"I've brought…him."

An audible sigh could be heard. "I see. I'll be right there." They didn't have to wait long for Albert to approach. He had blond hair, and carried a book in his right hand. He seemed somewhat…uncomfortable in his obviously royal clothing. He looked Carlos up and down.

"Well, I suppose there's no reason to be rude. I'm Albert, King of Serdio." He extended a hand to the teenager. Carlos shook it, but wore a slightly confused look on his face.

"No offense, Your Kingliness, but…should I be bowing instead of shaking your hand?"

Albert chuckled. "I dislike formality when it's not needed. You can call me Albert…but try not to call me Al like Meru does all the time."

"Very well. Might I ask what exactly happened when I showed up here?"

Albert frowned. "You literally dropped in on the throne room. It was some kind of energy circle. Just formed in the air…right above the heads of some important guests…"

Carlos sighed. "So that's why you're a bit pissed at me. Well…"

Albert shook his head with a smile. "Forget it. I guess it was just the really awful timing that angered me most. Oh! I'm sorry, I didn't catch your name!"

"Carlos Martinez," said the dark-haired boy.

"Tell me…how old are you?"

"I'm seventeen, going on eighteen…I think. I lost track of the dates a while back."

"Ah. I hate it when that happens. Look…you might want to head over to the town. Get yourself orientated, you know? If you wish, you can come back here once you're finished."

Carlos nodded, though he was a bit surprised by this man's generosity. He was sure it was impossible for any sane human being to be this nice to a teenage street orphan.

"Okay. Um…now, how exactly do I get out of here…?"

Albert laughed. "Miss, can you show the young man the right way?"

"Of course, sir. This way." She led him out of the library and down the hall. As they were leaving, they heard Albert call out.

"Just so you know, I did not design this castle!"

Carlos sighed, and let a small chuckle escape his lips. There was but one thing on his mind.

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"Why in the hell am I getting a feeling that I'm going to get more involved in this world than just crashing at the local castle…?"

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NOTE: Sorry for the poor quality of this chapter. I need to dig out my copy of LOD again…


	3. First Mission

Author's Note: This story takes place JUST after Legend of Dragoon ended, about 3 or so months. Dart is the Divine Dragoon, Rose, Lavitz, and Lloyd are still dead, and Miranda's still got the White-Silver Dragoon Spirit.

Chapter Three: First Mission

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The city of Bale was something out of an old story from the Renaissance. Wooden buildings and homes, instead of the familiar brick and metal of Los Angeles…or even the stone walls of Indels Castle, surrounded Carlos. Wandering around, he realized something very quickly.

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"Exactly how the hell am I going to get my hands on anything? I'm broke! I'm gonna have to go five-finger discount…"

He walked into a large shop. Inside, several people were buying various things. Carlos could tell immediately that there was no way to get out with anything here. He couldn't see one spot in the whole place where he could avoid being seen. Sighing, he turned to leave. As he did, he bumped into someone.

  
"Whoa! Sorry about that."

  
"It's cool. Hey, wait a second…" The man was about the same size as Carlos, and couldn't have been very much older than him. Maybe about five years. He had heavily spiked blond hair and wore red armor on his shoulders. "Oh, hell…it's you, ain't it?"

Carlos raised an eyebrow. "Uh…maybe? What are you referring to?"

"The term 'drop-in' mean anything to you?"

Carlos groaned. "You were another one of Albert's guests…"

"Yeah. And you damn near broke my neck." The guy chuckled.

"That pretty much coincides with what Albert told me. So…"

The man shook his head. "No, I'm not mad enough to wanna kill you, either. The name's Dart. Dart Field."

"Carlos Martinez." He then noticed the large sword Dart was carrying. "You some kind of soldier?"

"You could say that. What about you?"

Carlos chuckled. "Well, I've never had an actual job, even before I got here. I have absolutely no idea what I'm going to do now."

Dart raised an eyebrow. Before he could say more, however, a voice interrupted the conversation.

"Help! Someone help!" A middle-aged woman rushed into the shop. "Is anyone here a soldier?"

Dart sighed, and turned around. "I could help. What is it?"

"Some bandits kidnapped my son! Please, you've got to help!"

"Calm down, calm down. Where did they go?"

"Not far. They were fleeing to the west of the town. Thank you so much for helping!"

Dart didn't reply, just nod. He turned back to Carlos. "Well, I guess I'll see you later." With that, he left. As he walked out, he heard footsteps behind him. Turning around, he found Carlos right behind him.

"What are you doing?"

Carlos sighed. "I usually don't do this, but…I'm going with you."

"…Suit yourself. What do you have for a weapon?"

Carlos pulled back his coat, showing Dart his knives. "These."

"A knife-fighter, eh? You must've had a tough life."

Carlos chuckled. "That's one way of describing it."

The trip didn't last very long. Dart and Carlos found a small camp a few miles from town. Dart immediately drew his sword.

  
"You should probably get those blades out now," said Dart. "If I'm guessing right, we've got maybe two seconds before they find out we're here."

"How do you know?" asked Carlos. Suddenly a voice sounded from inside the tent.

"Hey! Who's out there!?" Five large men, all carrying swords, rushed out from the tent.

Dart turned to Carlos. "Told ya."

"Ha, ha, ha…" Carlos swiftly drew his knives.

"Looks like somebody sent in a little rescue squad," said one of the men. "Look, just go away now, before you get hurt."

Dart chuckled. "Pal, you don't have a damned idea who I am, do you…?"

The man raised an eyebrow. "Come to think of it, you do look familiar…ah, well. Kill them!!" Three men rushed Dart, and the other went after Carlos.

  
"Oh, please." Dart quickly counterattacked his opponent, sword raised to strike. Before his closest enemy got anywhere near in a good position to strike, Dart was already there. He slashed once, then again, then a turnaround slash, and finished with a hard uppercut swing.

"Volcano!!" The man was on the ground faster than you could blink, cold and dead.

Carlos, meanwhile, was exercising a more defensive approach. He blocked the first sword strike with crossed knives. Next, he pushed the man's blade away and slashed at him with his left knife, then the right. The right blade found flesh and came away stained with blood. Enraged, Carlos' opponent tried to run the teenager through with the sword's tip. Carlos sidestepped the attack and drove his left blade into the man's shoulder. Then, he pulled it free.

"Adios…" Carlos cut his enemy with his right knife, then the left knife. He then spun both blades in his hands, and brought them into a downward slash with both blades at once. This was enough to take care of the guy for good.

Dart saw Carlos' victory even though he was locking blades with another bandit. _"He handles those things better than I thought he would…"_ Dart quickly got the upper hand over his opponent and took him down with a lightning-fast slash across the midsection. The fourth bandit managed to get behind Dart during this exchange, and attempted to take him out with a blindside attack. Dart spotted the shadow of the man behind him and whirled around. He raised his sword, ready to block and counter, when something unexpected happened.

"Urk…!" The man grimaced, and staggered. Dart stepped back, and let the bandit fall forward to the ground. Buried in his back was Carlos' white-handled knife.

The leader of the bandits gulped. "All of them…dead in less than twenty seconds!!"

Dart turned to him. "Give up the kid, now."

"…Okay! Okay, you win! Take him…just don't kill me, too!" He fled as fast as his feet could carry him.

Dart looked over at the man with the blade sticking in his back. He pulled out the weapon, and looked at it.

"Not bad, Carlos. How long have you been using these things?"

Carlos sighed. "About eight years. Why?"

"The way you wielded them, it was like you were born to use them." He looked at the handle. There was a word inscribed into it. Dart tried to pronounce it.

  
"L-…Lu-…" He raised an eyebrow.

"Luz," said Carlos with a slight chuckle. "Where I come from, there's a language called Spanish. 'Luz' means 'light' in that language." He pulled out the other knife. "This one's also got an inscription. It says 'Fuego', the Spanish word for fire."

"Ah. Strange…I've never heard of any species that refers to their language by that name," said Dart.

"Species?"

"Yeah, what species speaks this language?" Dart gave Carlos a look that suggested that he couldn't believe Carlos hadn't known what he meant.

"Humans, of course! You're telling me there are others besides humans here that are…what's the right word…sentient?"

Dart gave Carlos his weapon back, and sighed. "I should've guessed. C'mon, let's get the kid. I'll try to explain everything to you as best I can…"


	4. A Legend Discovered

Chapter Four: A Legend Discovered

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Albert smiled to himself as he finished up a book. As he went to put it away and pull out another, something hit him right on top of the head.

"Ow! What in the…?" He looked at the object that fell on him. It was a book, bound in old leather. Although it was extremely dusty, Albert could make out the symbol of the sun inscribed on the cover as he picked the book up. He carefully opened it, afraid it might crumble to dust. When it didn't, he relaxed somewhat and read the cover page.

"Let's see…'The Tome of the Sun Dragon'." Albert raised an eyebrow. "Sun Dragon? Hmm…I shall have to show this to the others later…"

Back in town, Dart and Carlos had returned the child to his parents. Afterwards, they headed down the street together.

"At least I'm not broke anymore," said Carlos. He had taken a bag filled with gold coins from one of the dead bandits. Carlos never had qualms about stealing from a thief. There probably wasn't one coin in that bag that was gotten legitimately.

Dart chuckled. "Maybe you ought to get some armor. That shirt and those pants don't offer you much in the way of protection."

"Hmm…I suppose that'd be prudent. So, what happened after you killed that Melbu Frahma guy?"

"Things just sort of turned back to normal. There are still quite a number of those monsters I told you about out there, but not nearly as many as there used to be. Hell, you used to have to have your guard up almost the second you left town!"

Carlos nodded. "I know the feeling. On the streets of my hometown, you have to pay attention each time you turn a corner. If you don't, there's a good chance it'll be the last corner you ever turn." Carlos then chuckled quietly. "I still find the idea of more than one intelligent species on the same planet very odd."

Dart laughed. "Well, back at you; I find it hard to imagine a world with only humans in it!"

"Heh, I'm not surprised. One thing still puzzles me. You said that Meru girl was one of the Winglies, right?"

"Mmm-hmm."

"It explains the hair color, but I don't remember seeing any wings on her…"

Dart smiled. "Wingly wings aren't physical wings, like a bird's. They're ethereal; they look like they're made of light."

"Made of light?" repeated Carlos with a raised eyebrow.

"Yep. They're translucent, so it looks like they're pure light. The point is this: Because they're not physical wings, Winglies can withdraw them into their backs when they don't need them."

"Ah."

It didn't take long for Carlos to get his extra protection. Chain mail covered his T-shirt, over which a small breastplate now hung. His shins now had guards on them, and he had traded his tennis shoes for some nicely armored boots.

Dart looked him over. "Good. How's the weight?"

"It's not bad…but hold on." Carlos took a fighting stance, and did some practice moves. He immediately noticed a bit of a slowdown, and frowned. Still, it was better than being totally unarmored. Carlos sighed.

"Thanks, Dart. I'd say I've been around town enough now, so I'm gonna head back up to Indels Castle."

Dart chuckled. "I've got to get back there, too. Everybody who was at the meeting is staying there. A get-together, y'know?"

"Yeah…" Carlos tried to disguise his displeasure at that statement, but failed. Dart caught on immediately.

  
"What's wrong, Carlos?"

Carlos sighed. "I…I never got to do anything like that. I never really had a family…"

"You're an orphan?"

"…Yeah."

Dart bit his lip. "Well, join the club, bud. I am, as well."

Carlos raised an eyebrow? "Oh, yeah?"

Dart looked down at the ground. "Yeah. When I was a little kid, much younger than you, my parents were killed in an attack on our hometown."

Carlos nodded. "Well, at least you can remember your parents. I'm not even sure how mine died. I was told it was a gang fight that got out of control, but the source was pretty flaky to say the least. After that, I just lived my life one day at a time. Orphanages, missions…" Carlos sighed. "I eventually just took off and relied on myself."

"I know what you mean. Well…let's get up to the castle. Albert's a pretty patient guy, but the others…" Dart suddenly laughed. "Meru's probably half ready to pull her hair out by now."

Carlos smiled a little. "I've known a lot of people with energy to spare, but she's the most bouncy kid I've ever seen! Does she ever relax?"

"She does sleep, but that's pretty much it…!"

Meanwhile, in the castle, Albert was showing the other guests the book he found.

"Sun Dragon? But there's no Dragon called that I've ever seen! What's it look like? Where do we find it?"

Albert barely suppressed a laugh. "I was getting to all that, Meru!"

"Eh…sorry, Al."

"Not a problem. Anyway…here's what I've found. The Sun Dragon is a crossover breed of Dragon. According to the Tome, it was born from the combined energy of a Red-Eye Dragon and a White-Silver Dragon."

One of the other guests, an elderly man, spoke up. "From their energies?"

"Apparently, Haschel, it was the energy released when both of them died. Oddly enough, this happened BEFORE the Dragon Campaign."

"Before? How long before?" said another guest, a huge, hulking man with muscles rippling across his frame.

"About five thousand years, Kongol." Albert chuckled before continuing. "The story basically goes like this. The Dragons used to battle each other, to prove their strength and skill. Although they did not possess much in the way of wisdom, they knew that they were fighting mock battles and not true battles. The practice went on for thousands of years without any actual deaths, though many Dragons were badly injured. However…sixteen thousand years ago, two representatives took it too far. The Red-Eye Dragon and the White-Silver Dragon were locked in battle, going at it harder than ever before. Before they could be stopped…they destroyed each other. Their life energies were instantly released and combined. After that, the mock battles were never performed again."

"I don't doubt it," said Meru. "Sounds pretty nasty. Nasty, nasty, nasty!"

"Indeed," said Albert. "Also, shortly after the deaths of the Dragons, it is said than an image appeared in the sun. It was a new Dragon. There's no drawing, but it was described as being like a gigantic snake with small, clawed limbs and a very ornate head. It goes on to say that the image then disappeared in a flash, and an orange light was seen headed towards the northern part of the planet. After that, it was simply…forgotten."

Haschel sighed. "A new Dragon…with the elements of both Fire and Light, I take it?"

"Correct."

The old man chuckled. "Well, if there's a new Dragon, that must mean there's a new Dragoon Spirit to go along with it."

"True, true."

Meru piped up again. "Who do you think is going to be the one to receive the new spirit, Al?"

Albert smiled. "Well, the last page of the Tome says that when the destined bearer is near, the Tome itself will let them know. Doesn't say how, though-" Albert was about to say more, when Dart stepped into the hall.

"Hey, Albert!" called Dart.

"Hello, Dart. I was just telling the rest of the group about this tome I found here, and…what in the world?!" The Tome began to glow with a bright orange light, and levitate off the table. It steadily grew in intensity, and peaked as Carlos appeared in the hall. Once he did, the Tome shot out an orange beam that struck Carlos right in the chest, where his heart was. The impact knocked the teen right onto his back. He was unhurt, just stunned. The Tome dropped back on the table. The previously faded image of the sun on its cover glowed, and then went back to normal.

Meru raised both her eyebrows. "Guess we know who the winner is…"

Carlos growled as he lay on his back. "Okay!! I get it!! I messed up your meeting, and I'm sorry. Dios mio, you guys are the worst grudge-holders I've ever seen!!! Jesus!!"

Author's Note: Yeah, that story about the dragons fighting each other was a bit slapdash, wasn't it? Best I could come up with, I'm afraid. Same goes for the way the new bearer got chosen, though I wanted it to be humorous in nature.


	5. Meru's Challenge

Chapter Five: Meru's Challenge

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"So, you excited about getting your hands on the new Spirit, Carlos? Are ya? Are ya? Are ya?" asked Meru in her usual rapid speech.

Carlos sighed, but smiled. "Yeah, especially after you guys gave me the 411 about those…what'd you call them…Dragoon Spirits."

Meru raised an eyebrow. "411?"

"Information…but that's not really important."

"Oh. Well, I'm outta here. Gonna head down to the practice room and watch Haschel and Kongol pummel each other. Later!" Meru gave him a quick wave, and was gone before Carlos had a chance to respond.

__

"ACK! Dang, Meru, be careful, will ya?" That was Dart's voice. The blond swordsman stepped into Carlos' room a couple of seconds later.

"You ready, Carlos?"

Carlos nodded as he re-attached his knife sheaths to his belt. "Mm-hmm. All set, though I've got a feeling that only applies to the trip."

Dart nodded. "I know what you mean. I was just a few seconds away from death when I got my first Dragoon Spirit, and the second…well, the second was given to me after…" Dart suddenly looked down at the ground.

"I take it that it's a fairly sensitive issue for you," said Carlos matter-of-factly.

"Bingo."

Carlos nodded. "I read you." He pulled out a pair of sunglasses from his pocket, with orange-colored lenses.

"Whoa, I've never seen glasses like that before," said Dart with a raised eyebrow.

"They're not for correcting my sight, but for cutting out light glare. You said it gets snowy up north, which means there's going to be a lot of sunlight reflecting off that snow. Getting the Spirit isn't going to mean much if I've got snow blindness, right?"

Dart chuckled. "Good point."

"And besides…" added Carlos as he put the glasses on, "sometimes you've just got to look cool!" Dart suppressed a laugh at this.

"Right…well, c'mon, let's head down."

Carlos took the sunglasses back off and replaced them in his pocket. "Right behind you, Dart."

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A little bit later, in the practice room, Haschel and Kongol were having a sparring match, with Meru on the sidelines cheering on whoever had the upper hand at the time. Dart and Carlos entered the room just as Haschel jumped away from a downward axe slash by Kongol.

"You're getting a bit slow, big guy," said the aged warrior with a small chuckle.

"Kongol not think so!" Suddenly, Kongol thrust the head of his axe forward. Haschel barely managed to get out of the way in time.

"Whew…that was certainly close."

Carlos raised an eyebrow. "Those are some great moves, Mr. Haschel!"

Haschel smirked. "Thanks, but I told you not to call me 'Mr. Haschel', young man."

"Sorry."

Haschel sighed. "I need to cool down somewhat. What do you say, Kongol? Draw?"

Kongol nodded. "Yes. Draw." They walked off the practice floor.

"Aw, man! Just when it was getting REALLY good!" grumbled Meru. "Now what am I supposed to…hey, I know!" She marched right up to Carlos. "Wanna spar, Carlos?"

Carlos raised an eyebrow. "What? Right now?"

"Duh, of course I mean right now! C'mon, please…?"

Carlos turned to Dart. "Uh, Dart…"

Dart raised both his hands. "Aw, no! I ain't getting involved!"

Carlos sighed. "All right, I'll spar with you, Meru. But I don't-HOLY SHIT!" He turned to see the young Wingly wielding an enormous mace weapon.

Meru blinked. "What? Is my outfit on backwards or something?"

"You're…not…going to use…THAT, are you?"

Meru looked confused for a second, then grinned as she realized what Carlos was referring to. "Aw, what's wrong? You scared of my little…traveling companion?"

"No, I'm not scared of the hammer…I'm scared of getting HIT with the hammer!"

Meru laughed loudly. "Relax, it's not like I'm gonna try to kill you or anything!"

Carlos sighed. "…Okay. I've faced tough fights before and lived; this can't be THAT bad."

They took their positions on the floor. Meru was beaming, while Carlos was sweating bullets.

"Ready?" she asked innocently.

"…Ready," answered Carlos.

"Here I go!" With that, she seemed to disappear.

"What the hell?!" Carlos looked around. "Where'd you go?"

"Right here!!!!" Carlos whipped around to see the hammer coming right at him. On pure reflex, he dodged to the side, barely getting clear of the weapon.

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"Dios mio…how can anyone move so fast?!" Carlos quickly found himself in retreat as Meru took swipe after swipe at him with the hammer.

"Hey, stand still!" she taunted.

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"Argh…this is getting embarrassing…" He jumped backwards, and reached for his knives. However, before he even grasped the hilts, Meru was right in front of him.

"Gotcha!" she laughed as she swung the huge weapon at Carlos. Carlos had no chance-the weapon caught him in the shoulder and sent him sprawling to the ground. If it had been any harder of a swing, Carlos' shoulder would've been shattered.

"Oh, no!" cried Meru. "I overdid it again! Hey, uh…Carlos?"

Dart rolled his eyes. "Meru, you've got to learn the difference between sparring and real fighting!"

"Don't worry," came Carlos' voice. It wasn't his usual tone, though. It carried a strange coldness to it. "I'm perfectly fine. You're an awesome fighter, Meru. I'm really impressed."

"Uh…thanks…I think…"

Carlos slowly stood back up, facing away from Dart and Meru. He then reached into his pocket, and pulled out the sunglasses he wore earlier. As he slipped them on, he turned sharply in Meru's direction. Next, he drew his knives from their sheaths.

"I believe it's time for round two," he said.

Meru smiled. "Heh, you got it!!!" She seemed to disappear again. Carlos just stood there.

__

"Three…two…one…NOW!" Carlos whipped around as Meru seemed to reappear behind him.

"I got you-WHOA!" Meru stopped dead in her tracks, as Carlos had the tip of one of his knives at her throat. "No way…how'd you do that? Before, you could barely keep up!"

Carlos expression remained emotionless, as did his tone. "I still can't keep up with your speed, Meru. I doubt any amount of training would let me do that. But I can predict your moves. Forgive me, but I was able to guess that you were the kind of person who, after using a trick that works once, will expect to always get the same result with that trick." Meru just frowned at this. "Furthermore, I remembered about how long it was between when you seemed to disappear and when you reappeared behind me. The rest, I'll admit, was a pure guess."

Meru sighed. "Whatever. Can you please take the knife away from my throat now?"

At last, Carlos' expression changed. "Oh, sorry!" He pulled it away, and re-sheathed the weapons. "I guess that means I win, huh?" he said politely.

"Oooh!" Meru kicked Carlos in the shin.

"Ow! Sorry, jeez!"

Meru turned around. "I'm going back upstairs!" She stormed out with her usual speed.

Carlos sighed, rubbed his shin. "Is she always that bad of a loser, Dart?"

Dart laughed. "I'm afraid so. Don't worry, though. Just be nice to her for a while; she'll drop the grudge eventually."

Carlos chuckled in spite of himself. "I hope so. I'd rather have the snow blindness than the broken shin!"

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Author's Note: Yeah, I know it's been a hell of a long time. College preparations are tough! Also, I know this chapter screams "filler episode." Lastly, I've been watching Trigun on Adult Swim, and I decided to add a little bit of Vash the Stampede to Carlos' character. I hope that's okay. ^_^


End file.
